Lowe: Bahrain will provide a benchmark

2 April 2014 – Mercedes technical chief Paddy Lowe is expecting a ‘tight battle’ in Bahrain this weekend and has said the race should provide an early benchmark for the year ahead.

Mercedes are the team to beat currently and having finished one-two in Malaysia on Sunday with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, will again be the favourites in Sakhir, venue for the third round in the 2014 F1 World Championship.

“Malaysia produced a highly satisfying result with a historic one-two finish for the team. This is down to the hard work and dedication of a fantastic group of people and is very much deserved,” Lowe remarked, “Having said that, however, it is essential that we do not relent in our efforts.”

“With every team having run at the circuit during the winter, Bahrain can be seen as a benchmark in terms of competitiveness at this early stage of the season. We expect a tight battle throughout the field this weekend and it will be interesting to see how far the cars have come over the past few weeks since our last visit [for winter testing],” he added.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff meanwhile has reiterated the need to stay focussed: “We can be very proud of our achievements last week in Malaysia but there is no room for complacency. After two races we are leading both the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships. But the most important thing to take from that is that it has only been two races,” he continued.

“We are in the very early stages of what will be a demanding year for everybody and we have seen already that fortunes can change very quickly. We approach Bahrain with the same mentality as we have approached every challenge so far this season: in the knowledge that nothing must be taken for granted.”

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